It’s Nomination Time for Pai’s FCC Diversity Committee

By Public Notice released on June 7, 2017, the Federal Communications Commission announced that the nomination period for its new Advisory Committee on Diversity and Digital Empowerment is officially open. The new Committee was announced back in April, and now, interested participants have until the end of the month to throw their name into the ring for consideration.

Meant to be something of a braintrust for interested stakeholders, the “Committee’s mission will be to provide recommendations to the Commission on how to empower disadvantaged communities and accelerate the entry of small businesses, including those owned by women and minorities, into the media, digital news and information, and audio and video programming industries, including as owners, suppliers, and employees,” based on the terms of the Notice. “It will also provide recommendations to the Commission on how to ensure that disadvantaged communities are not denied the wide range of opportunities made possible by next-generation networks.”

Nominations must be submitted by no later than 11:59 pm on Wednesday, June 28, 2017, to ACDDE@fcc.gov.

While no official nomination form is required, to be considered, nominees must supply the following information:

 Name, title, and organization of the nominee and a description of the organization, sector or other interest the nominee will represent;

 Nominee’s mailing address, e-mail address, and telephone number;

 A statement summarizing the nominee’s qualifications and reasons why the nominee should be appointed to the Committee;

 A statement, if the nominee will represent a specific organization, describing the organization as well as the benefit of having the organization represented on the Committee; and

 A statement confirming that the nominee, if seeking appointment for the individual’s expertise and not as a representative of an organization or entity, is not a registered federal lobbyist;

 Individuals seeking nomination as the Committee’s Chairperson should indicate their interest in such position and describe their relevant qualifications or experience.

Nominations are open to representatives of various sectors of the communications industry, state and local regulators, representatives of consumers and community organizations, as well as individuals who can be appointed as “Special Government Employees” for the expertise they might bring to the committee. For more information, visit the FCC’s website.

Kristal Lauren High co-founded and serves as Editor in Chief of Politic365. She also operates her own communications and creative engagement company.
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